MIAMI – Miami Gardens Police are investigating a fatal shooting at a car wash on the corner of U.S. 441 and Northwest 191st Street that claimed the life of its well-known owner.
Errold Peart, 59, was shot and killed while attempting to stop a robbery on Sunday afternoon, said police.
Police said Peart tried stopping two teens from robbing a man. As the teens ran away, one fired a shot, hitting Peart in the head.
"He wasn't the intended target. It was one of his clients, but being the person he was, he put himself in harm's way first, and that's why it happened. He gave his life for someone else," said Damion Peart, the victim's son. "For a chain, a chain bracelet. You know, the kids that do that, you need to turn yourself in because eventually you're going to get caught."
"He was a hard working person. If he could help the world, he'd help the world. He hates to see wrongs, he hates gun. I can't even talk," said Dawn Barrett, Peart's wife. "Oh God have mercy."
Friends said Peart often gave work to young men who needed it. He leaves behind his wife and two children, including a daughter attending medical school at the University of Miami.
"That man did too much for this community," said Ron Gibbs, a family friend. "If somebody knows something, they need to come forward, you know. Forget that no snitch thing, and keep it real, let that man's legacy live on, you know."
Police believe the two shooters left the area in a four-door, grey Nissan.
Anyone with information on the shooting is asked to call Miami-Dade CrimeStoppers at 305-471-TIPS.